Suffering For Beauty
by LinaLovett
Summary: AJ Curtis is trying to survive in this world, despite her tough boyfriend and her three brothers who don't think she can handle herself. She just wanted a place where she belongs, even though that place may not even exist...
1. Chapter 1

**Hey hey guys!!!!! Sorry I haven't updated my other story in a while. But here's a new one I'm working on. It's a sisterfic about Soda's twin, Aubrey Lucinda-Rose, also known as AJ. She's seventeen and dating Dallas. Dallas is alive, but Johnny is unfortunately not. Let me know what you guys think, okay? If nobody likes it, I'm just going to delete it. Let me know if you want to read more, and I can make that happen.**

**AJ POV**

The rule in our house was that the first person to wake up makes breakfast. Unfortunately, that's almost always me. My brothers are able to tug clothes on and be ready to leave for school or work in a matter of three minutes. I, however, take longer, so I wake up before everyone else.

I opened the refrigerator to find that whoever finished the chocolate cake the day before didn't make a new one. "Lazy bums," I muttered to myself, and started pulling out cake ingredients.

I was stirring the batter when I heard the door behind me slam. I sighed. "Hey, Two-Bit," I said. I felt hands grabbed my waist.

"Actually," a voice whispered in my ear. "It's me."

I giggled and turned around to face Dally. He kissed me on the lips and wrapped his muscular arms around me. He kissed more, pulling me close to him. Soon I had to pull away to catch my breath. I smiled at him. "Is that enough of a greeting?"

He smiled back. "Just a little more," he said, not giving me a chance to respond before pulling me back against him. I pulled away again.

"Are you drunk?" I asked with another giggle.

"Only on life, baby." He lifted my chin and brought his lips to mine once more, this time more gentle. That's what I loved about my boyfriend. He was a rough guy, but he was also the sweetest guy I've ever been with. He kissed my lips a few more times, then kissed my neck, which he knew was my sweet spot.

"Um," we heard Pony say from the living room. Dally and I pulled apart from each other to see Pony and Soda staring at us. "Sorry," Pony said, looking down so we wouldn't notice the shade of red he was turning.

"AJ, you know the rules," Soda said. "No traumatizing our little brother until after breakfast."

I sighed and kissed my boyfriend one last time. "I gotta go get dressed."

I had the smallest room in the house. I wasn't mad about it, I was happy to have my own space. I just wished sometimes that my own space wasn't so cramped.

I got dressed and went back into the kitchen. Darry was sitting at the table, along with Two-Bit and a shirtless Steve. Dally was sitting next to an empty chair, which was clearly meant for me.

"Aubrey," Darry said.

"Darrel," I answered back.

"Brey, I don't think what you're wearing is very appropriate."

I looked down at my outfit. I was wearing a short skirt. "Darry, it's eighty degrees out. It's too hot for a parka."

"I'm not talking about a parka. Maybe just a longer skirt."

I looked at Steve. "He's not even a shirt." Steve looked up from the cake he was stuffing in his face.

"Why are you dragging me into this?" he demanded.

Two-Bit laughed. "But Steve has nothing anyone wants to see."

"Hey!" Steve said.

"AJ, please just go change," Darry said.

"Fine," I said. I was sick of fighting with him. We never agreed on anything, and fighting with him was just starting to wear me out.

I changed into a skirt that was a little longer. I didn't really care that much what I looked like.

Dally drove me to school that morning. I wasn't sure whose car he had, but I knew he wouldn't have given me a straight answer if I asked him.

School was a drag. I had a slut's reputation, so most of the pervs in my school looked at me when I walked down the hall.

Someone slapped my butt when I was at my locker. "Hey slut," the boy said, a boy who I recognized.

"Go away, Chris," I said.

He groaned. "Oh, come on, Curtis. You know I was just kidding."

Chris was my old boyfriend. I lost my virginity to him when I was fourteen. When we broke up a few months later, he made sure to tell all of his idiot friends that we hooked up.

"Chris, go away," I repeated. We didn't even attempt to stay friends after we broke up, so it bugged me when he tried to strike up conversations with me.

"Can't you at least hear me out?" he asked. I looked at him and raised my eyebrows.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"I wanted to tell you that your boobs have gotten much bigger since you were fourteen," he said with a smirk, clearly staring down my shirt.

I threw a death glare at him. "Go away," I said one more time, hoping he would follow my advice.

Ponyboy, who had a lot more muscle than he had a year earlier, had heard the last sentence I said as he passed me in the hallway and stopped at my locker.

"I think you should leave my sister alone," he warned. All three of us knew that Chris could beat Ponyboy in a fight any day, but Pony had reminded Chris that I had three muscular brothers, two guy friends, and a boyfriend who could easily smash his head in if I asked them to.

Chris stuffed his hands in is pockets and walked away.

Dally was there waiting for me when we got home. As soon as I walked through the door, he smiled and came over to hug me.

"Hey, babe. How was your day?" he asked.

Pony didn't give me a chance to answer. "Chris was buggin' her," he said.

Dally hated Chris. "I'm gonna fuckin' kill that kid one day."

Darry walked in with Sodapop behind him. "Hey guys," Darry said.

We mumbled a greeting to him. Dally sat down on the couch and I sat on his lap.

"I'm gonna go rip Chris Chambers' head off tonight," Dally announced. "Who wants to come?"

Soda groaned. "Ugh, I hate that guy," he said to himself. He looked up. "I'll drive," he said.

"Guys," I said. "I can take care of it, okay?" Nobody looked convinced. I sighed, stood up, and grabbed Dally's hand. "We'll be in my room," I said to whoever was listening.

Once we were in my room, I closed the door and turned around to kiss Dally. He was at least six inches taller than me, so he lifted me up so I could reach. I squealed and kissed him.

"I love you," I said, and then kissed him again.

He smiled. "And I love you." He put me down and walked me over to my bed and sat down. "So," he started. "Did that jackass touch you?"

Dally knew my history with Chris. When I was fourteen, he took me to his house when his parents weren't home, told me he loved me, and took my virginity. Even though Darry was too oblivious to know, everyone else knew. Darry still thought I was a virgin. If only Darry knew how much of a problem I used to have with drugs…

"No," I told Dally, looking at the floor, like I always did when I lied.

He chuckled. "Baby, you are the worst liar in the world."

I laughed along with him and nodded. "Yeah, I know. But I don't wanna talk about it."

He smiled at me. "Okay," he said, nodding.

"I love you," I told him once more.

He kissed me passionately and looked into my eyes. "And I love you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! I'm sorry, I've been having trouble keeping track of time lately. I keep trying to write new chapters for my stories but I get side tracked. I suggest re reading the first chapter before reading this one. I hope you guys like it!**

**AJ POV**

I hated wearing skirts around the house, so I changed into a pair of shorts to lounge in. It was at least eighty degrees out, and we didn't have enough fans in the house to have one in my room, so Dally and I were boiling hot in my room. We didn't have a choice though. My room was really the only place we could have alone time.

We were cuddling on my bed, but that soon got way to hot. We soon gave up on having alone time and went out to the living room to hang out with everybody else.

Everyone in the living room was covered with a thin layer of sweat. It was too hot for the guys to go out and play football, so we all just sat on the floor and watched the TV. Dally and I were sitting next to each other and he had his hands resting on my upper thigh. Every time Mickey Mouse did something funny on TV, causing Two-Bit to crack up, Dally would pull me closer and whisper something about how stupid Two-Bit was in my ear. I'd giggle each time, and Darry would shoot Dal a look from the kitchen table. I didn't like the way Darry treated Dally. Darry treated him like scum and had a big problem with us acting flirty in front of him. Everybody else was fine with us dating, so I didn't appreciate Darry treating my boyfriend like crap.

Dally and I leaned in to kiss, but we were interrupted by Darry announcing that dinner was ready. We both sighed, but Dal quickly stole a kiss from me anyway.

"So how was everyone's day today?" I asked to whoever was listening.

"Soda got a girl's number," Steve burst out. All eyes went to Soda, who just shrugged it off. Soda hadn't dated much since Sandy left. None of the girls in town interested him.

"Hey Dar," Dallas started. "Would it be okay if I took AJ out tonight?"

Darry sighed and squeezed his eyes shut like he had a headache. "To where?" He asked Dally.

"I'm not sure. Maybe to a movie or something like that."

Darry sighed. "Yeah, I guess so. Just have her home by eleven." Dally nodded and smiled at me. I tried to smile back, but I was fighting the urge to scoff. My curfew was an hour earlier than the boys.

The rest of dinner was full of scattered conversation. Two-Bit kept telling stupid sex jokes that nobody even fully understood, but laughed at anyway to save his pride. Steve, who was still shirtless from that morning, told the whole story behind Soda getting that girl's number. We all laughed when we found out that Steve was flirting with the girl, but she was clearly not interested in him; she was interested in his celibate best friend.

After dinner, Pony disappeared to his room and Two-Bit and Steve retired to the living room, leaving Soda and Dally and I to clean up. We were putting plates in the sink when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" Two-Bit yelled, his eyes never leaving the TV.

Pony's friend Jesse entered wearing a track uniform. "Hey, is Ponyboy ready?" Jesse asked Sodapop. Pony and some of his track friends were training for the upcoming season, so he went out running a lot.

"I'll go see," said Soda. Soda disappeared down the hall to find Pony, leaving Jesse in the living room. He smiled at me and started to fix his hair. "Hi Aj," he said, blushing slightly.

I smiled back at him. "Hi Jesse."

Two-Bit laughed at the scene. "Dude, take it from me. She is so out of your league."

I tried to hide my giggle. I felt bad for the kid. Doing school sports demanded a lot of time, so none of the serious jocks in my school really had long-term relationships. A lot of Pony's friends had a crush on me, and I thought it was sweet.

Pony emerged from his room just in time. "Hey man, are you ready?"

Jesse nodded and looked at me. "Bye Aj," he said, smiling again.

I smiled back at him. "Bye Jesse." Jesse and Pony left. I could hear them starting to break out into a run.

Dally and I left soon after. He took me by the hand and walked me out to the car he was driving. I still didn't know whose car it was.

We drove around for a little while, trying to figure out where to go. We wanted to be alone, but there weren't many options. I suggested we go to Buck's, but Dally said he didn't want to take me somewhere sleazy or cheap. We eventually decided to park the car somewhere private and go from there.

We found a park to go to. By this time it was dark out and the air was quiet and peaceful.

We started kissing and I suggested we move to the back of the car. Five minutes later, I was lying across the back seat with Dally on top of me. My fingers were laced through his hair and my mouth was on his. His hands were roaming my body. I tried to wrap my leg around him, but the back seat was a little cramped. But I enjoyed it. Being alone together had been a problem for us lately and we were, well… lonely for each other. I tried to shift my weight a little bit, but something was stopping me.

"Hold on," I whispered breathily. "I need to readjust a little." There was a seat belt buckle digging into my back and it was bothering me.

"I'm sorry that I don't have somewhere more romantic to take you. You deserve better than this," he said.

I smiled. "It's okay. I just like being with you." We started to make out again, but there was something I wanted to know.

"Hey Dal?" I asked.

"Hm?" he moaned against my shoulder, which he was kissing.

"Whose car is this?" He stopped kissing me and looked into my eyes. He sighed and sat up into the seat. I sat next to him and started to fix my shirt where it had ridden up past my stomach.

"My dad loaned it to me." I was a little shocked. Dally and his dad didn't like each other. I thought that they weren't on speaking terms.

"Why?" I asked.

Dally shrugged. "I needed a car. I went to my parents' house to check on my mom and he offered to lend his car to me until next month."

"That was nice of him," I said. Dally shrugged again.

"I don't wanna talk about my dad." He leaned in and kissed me again. We were soon laying down again. Our kisses were more passionate this time. His hands started roaming again. Dally was always careful not to go too far, but I kind of wanted him to this time.

I tugged at his shirt, wanting it off. He broke our embrace for a split second to pull his shirt off, but immediately started kissing me again. My fingertips started to trace the waistline of his jeans and unbuttoned them. He started to kiss my neck again and I took that opportunity to whisper into his ear.

"Do you have a condom?" I whispered. Dally stopped his motions and looked into my eyes.

"Baby," he started. "We're not having sex in the back of my dad's car."

"Do you wanna go somewhere else?" I asked him.

"I think I should take you home now." Dal climbed off of me and climbed into the front seat. I sighed and climbed into the passenger seat. Dally was trying to button and zip his pants but he was having difficulties. He was a little, well… excited.

"I want this," I said. "I want you."

"I want you too, baby, but not like this. Not in the back of a car while your brothers think we're at the movies." He looked at me. "I love you so much. You deserve romance, not a quickie."

The car ride was mostly silent. He pulled up into my driveway and kissed me goodnight.

"I might crash on your couch tonight, but I'm not sure yet."

I smiled and nodded. "See you in the morning."

As soon as I walked in the house, I saw Darry waiting up for me.

"Did you have fun?" he asked. I nodded. "Did he behave himself?"

I sighed. "Darry, he was a perfect gentleman," much to my dismay.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey. I'm sorry I haven't been updating my stories, school has kept me busy. I have some ideas about this story and I'm going to try and work them in. I hope you guys haven't lost interest!**

**AJ POV**

I woke up the next morning with a bad feeling. The night before had not gone how I wanted it to. Dally and I had been together for almost a year, and we were good friends before that. We both knew I wasn't a virgin, and he wasn't the least bit celibate. We loved each other, and I didn't see why he didn't want to have sex. Any time sex was mentioned, Dal completely pushed me away. He never told me why he was so hesitant.

I wondered out to the kitchen, where breakfast was already made and being eaten. I saw Two-Bit and Steve, but not my boyfriend. "Where's Dal?" I asked.

"Lover Boy's not here," Two-Bit said between bites of pancake. "He and I went out drinking last night, so he's probably hung over." That made me a little upset. Dally drank and smoked all the time, but he only went out with Two-Bit when he wanted to get drunk. Something was bothering him, and he wouldn't tell me what it was.

He wasn't at my house that morning to take me and Pony to school, so we had to ride in the truck with Soda. Soda and I weren't just twins, we were really good friends. We could tell each other anything. But he was protective like a big brother would be. He didn't have a problem with me dating Dallas, but he didn't think it was a good idea for me to be in a serious relationship.

"And make sure you let us know if that prick bothers you again," Soda said, bringing up Chris from yesterday. "That kid has another thing coming to him if he keeps that up."

"He's not a kid, Soda. He's our age." I said. I wasn't trying to defend the jerk, but it annoyed me when my brothers tried to act tougher than they were. Out of all the times Soda and Pony threatened to beat people up, they only followed through a couple of times.

"He's a kid," Soda insisted. "A boy doesn't become a man until he knows how to treat a girl."

Pony was pretty much silent the whole way. He tried not to express his opinion about my love life. He was intimidated by Dallas and never really knew much about Chris or any other boy I've been with.

Soda dropped us off at school. Pony met up with Jesse and some of their track friends. I caught up with Evie at her locker. Evie was still going strong with Steve and her and I were best friends. I smiled and waved at her as I approached her locker.

"Hey Brey," she said.

"Hi," I said back. My smile was forced, and she could tell.

"What's wrong?"

I sighed and shook my head. "My brothers are crazy and my boyfriend is being all mysterious."

Evie giggled. "Sounds like you need a girl's night. Why don't you come over to Angela's tonight? We can have a few shots, watch some movies," she suggested. I was tempted to accept her offer. Evie and I were best friends, but she was more of a partier than I was. She and Steve both were. I liked Angela, but I didn't like her brothers, so I tried to keep away from the Shepard house if I could.

"You know I don't drink," I said. I was just using that as an excuse, and Evie knew that, but she accepted it anyway.

"Well, it's an open invitation if you change your mind." The bell rang and we went to our separate classes.

School was boring. Don't get me wrong; I did well in school. I just didn't like the people in my school. Most of my good friends weren't in school. My only friends in my school were Evie, Angela, and their group of friends. I saw Pony in the hall way and the cafeteria, but I didn't usually say hi to him. I didn't want to embarrass him in front of his friends.

The day ended and Pony had track, so I was planning on walking home. I stepped outside and saw the car that Dally's been driving parked with Dally leaning against it, waiting for me. He saw me and smiled as I walked towards him.

"Hey babe," he said. "You look really pretty today."

"We need to talk," I said to him. He nodded. He was about to turn and open the car door for me when we heard someone calling his name. He turned back to see Tim Shepard walking towards us. He nodded at me in acknowledgement then turned to Dallas.

"Have you seen my kid brother? He never showed up for school today." Dallas shook his head. Tim then turned to me. "Have you seen him?" He glared at me and a shiver went up my spine. There was a reason I didn't like the Shepard boys.

"No," I finally answered. "I haven't."

Tim gave us a look and walked off and Dal opened the car door for me. The ride to my house was filled with light conversation; he asked me how my day was and asked me where Pony was. Nobody was home, which was a relief, since we needed to have a conversation. We went to my room and sat on my bed.

"So," he started, "about last night,"

"Do you wanna have sex?" I asked. The subject had been brought up before, but never led to much. "I thought you did last night, but then you stopped."

He sighed. "Of course I want to; I love you. But, I don't want it to cheapen our relationship."

I shook my head. "It won't," I said.

"If we had sex," Dallas started. He paused, and then continued. "You know you wouldn't be my first, and I know I wouldn't be your first." We sat there silent for a minute. Then I remembered something that had been bothering me all day.

"Why were you drinking last night?" I asked. He looked at me with a surprised expression. I reached down to hold my hand and started playing with my fingers.

"Something's just been on my mind lately," he said back.

"Like what?" I asked.

He just shrugged. "I don't want to talk about it today." I nodded. He didn't always like to talk about things, and I knew not to push too hard. He scanned my body and looked back at my eyes. "You look really beautiful today," he said again. I smiled and he smiled. I leaned toward him and kissed him. He kissed me back, needy and passionate. We kissed a few more times and I leaned back onto my bed, taking him with me. Even though we weren't having sex, I loved our alone time. He always gave me butterflies when he kissed me. He was rough, but he was also gentle and loving.

He rubbed my side as we kissed and my fingers became tangled in his hair. He started to kiss my neck, causing me to moan a little. I started gabbing fistfuls of his t-shirt, wanting him to take it off so I could feel his warm skin. His hand moved down to my thigh, where he hiked up my skirt so he could touch my bare leg. "Is this okay?" he whispered breathily in my ear. I smiled and nodded. He attacked my lips again, this time more intense. I tugged his shirt off, breaking our embrace for a second to pull it over his head. I wrapped my legs around his waist, causing him to grab my thigh once more.

I reached down to unbutton his jeans, wanting them off too. He let me, even though that's where he usually stops me. He never missed a beat, though. He pushed my shirt up a little so he could rub my stomach. There's no telling where this was heading, but the sound of my bedroom door opening tore us apart.

"Hey, AJ, can I borrow your-" Soda stopped dead in his tracks, and Dallas and I separated. Soda was frozen for a second, and then he stepped inside my room and held the door open, waiting for Dally to leave. We both stayed silent while he got off my bed, buttoned his pants, grabbed his shirt off the floor, and leaned down to kiss my cheek.

"I love you," he said quietly. He walked passed Soda without saying a word to him. Soda didn't say anything until he heard the front door open and close.

"What would've happened if I didn't just walk in?" he asked. Soda was a pretty understanding person, but he looked really angry.

"Soda, I-"

"Because it looks like it was headed into a direction that it shouldn't have been." I was scared to say anything at first. I used to walk in and interrupt him and Sandy, but I knew he didn't see it as the same thing.

"Soda, it wasn't what it looked like," I said gently.

"Really?" His voice was getting angrier by the word. "Because I thought I saw Dallas Winston on top of you with no shirt on."

"We were just…" I couldn't even think of anything to say. What Soda saw wasn't fair to him, and I knew it wasn't.

"Dallas is not a good guy, Brey. He has slept with half the girls in town. He caused five pregnancy scares before he started dating you. At one point, he had an STD. I don't know which one, but some trashy broad gave it to him. He has been arrested eight times since the time he was eleven. " Tears were flowing down my face at this point. Soda was red in the face. "I don't know if you two are having sex, but that was unacceptable. You know you're not allowed to have him in your room when no one is home."

"I've caught you and Sandy," I said through my tears.

"That's different," Soda stated.

"How?"

"Because you're a girl!" Soda was nearly yelling now. "It's different because Dallas Winston has a bad reputation, and I know you're not a virgin. If you two were just talking in here, I wouldn't care. But the fact is that his pants were half off and you had your legs wrapped around him." His voice started to get softer again. "Look, I won't tell Darry, but you need to know that this can't happen. I won't cover for _that _again."

I sat there trying to wipe my tears away. I hated when Soda was mad at me. He was one of my best friends. He sighed again. "Brey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry." He paused. "You know I love you. I would anything for you. But, I get a little concerned about you two. Dal is pretty tough."

"He's different with me than he is with you guys and those other girls." I practically choked the words out.

Soda nodded. "I really hope so. If I find out he's ever raised a hand to you, I'll kill him." He walked out of my room. "Darry and Pony will be home in a little bit. Dinner's in an hour." He closed the door behind him.

Dally didn't come over for dinner that night. Soda kept his promise by not telling Darry or Ponyboy. I ate quickly and went back to my room. I was lying on my bed when I got an idea. It was Friday night and I needed to have some fun. I quickly got dressed and told Darry where I was going to spend the night. He agreed and told me to call him later. Evie was right; I _did _need a girl night.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Outsiders**

**AJ POV**

Soda drove me to Angela's house. Being with him in a car was awkward and the radio was broken, so we were stuck in silence. He was still upset about earlier, and I didn't want to test him or start to cry again. In an attempt to break the silence, Soda muttered, "Is Dallas gonna be there?" I shook my head no. "What about the Shepard boys?"

I sighed. "Well, it's their house, so they might be. I'm not sure though." Soda nodded. We sat there in more uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. I honestly didn't know what to say to him. We never used to be shy around each other, but he's never walked in on me with a boy before.

"Look, Brey," he started. I clenched my eyes shut. Whatever he was about to say, I knew I didn't want to hear it. "I'm really sorry I didn't knock earlier." I was speechless. I didn't expect him to apologize. "I mean, even if you were alone in there, I really should've knocked. You need your privacy."

"Um," I mumbled. "That's okay."

Soda shook his head furiously. "No, it's not. You're a woman now, you deserve some respect."

"So you're not mad about earlier?" I asked. I wasn't entirely sure if I was hearing him right. I looked at him, and he was squirming uncomfortably in his seat.

"No, I'm not. It wasn't fair of me to just barge in and be angry at what I saw." He looked over at me and could clearly see that I was confused. "I guess what I'm saying is, if you do that again, don't get caught."

I was stunned. "What?"

"You've caught me doing more than I'm proud of. And I know you caught Pony masturbating once." I cracked a smile at that one. The look on Pony's face when he knew I was standing there was priceless. But Soda was right. He and Sandy used to get dirty right on the living room couch. They would ditch school and lose track of time. Due to Soda not being able to tell time, I was forced to find out the hard way that he likes to have the girl on top. "I'm not Dad, Brey. And I don't wanna be like Darry. You and I are friends, and I want to keep it that way. I want us to be able to count on each other. You're old enough to decide who you want to be with." We were pulling into Angela's driveway at this point. "Just remember, AJ, don't feel like you have to do anything that you don't wanna do."

"Oh my god," I muttered as I took my seatbelt off. "Soda, this was going really well until you started giving me the sex talk. I was about to get out, but Soda kept talking.

"I'm not trying to, Brey. But I know you've had some issues with guys and you need to know that you're worth more than that." I wanted Soda to stop talking. I hated to talk to him or Pony about this stuff. "You're worth more than what you do in bed."

"Stop, Soda," I said.

"Brey, I-"

"See you tomorrow," I said as I shut the truck door.

Angela was at the door before I even knocked, vodka bottle in hand. "Hey girl!" she said, followed by a hug that reeked of booze. I wasn't surprised, though. Angela had a nasty habit of breaking into her mom's liquor cabinet. Evie saw me and pulled me in the house.

"Angela's already had five shots," she whispered in my ear. "Which means you're five behind. Drink up!" She handed me the bottle and walked to the kitchen to get me a glass.

Three hours later, we were all trashed. I'm not proud of it, but it was a Friday night, and every girl deserves to have a little fun once in a while. We decided it'd be a good idea to get drunk and talk about boys all night. So there we were, sprawled on Angela's living room carpet, laughing about our sex lives.

"Wait, Evie," Angela slurred, "How big is he? I mean, he acts like he's hung like a horse, but you know what they say…" She mumbled a little more, but I couldn't understand her.

"Well," I chimed in. "I saw him naked once when we were like ten, and he was pretty hot."

"Don't let Dal hear that." Angela said. "How is he in the sack anyway? As good as I remember?" She followed her question with a long chug of vodka. She wasn't joking. She and Dallas slept together a few times a couple years ago. I always knew that.

The vodka had gotten to me and all I could do was giggle. "I don't know," I shrugged dramatically. "He won't sleep with me."

Evie looked shocked. "Seriously? I mean, Dallas Winston has actually gone months without getting laid?" She looked at the floor as if she were trying to solve all the world's problems in her head. "How does he last?"

"He probably jerks a lot," We heard from the stairs. We all whipped our heads around to see Tim coming downstairs. He took a look around at the kitchen and back at us. "Seriously, Angela? You broke into mom's cabinet again just to get drunk with your friends? Go buy your own damn booze next time."

Honestly, I immediately felt uncomfortable with Tim in the room. His presence just made me squirm, even through half a bottle of liquor.

The whole 'stay up all night' idea failed a couple hours later. Angela and Evie were completely passed out snoring, like they always are when they're drunk. I was tired too, but I had trouble getting into a deep sleep. I got up to use the bathroom and saw that Tim and Curly were still up and in the kitchen. I started to just walk past them without saying a word, and Tim called me over.

"AJ, can I talk to you?" I paused for a minute, then went over to them. They were both drinking. They weren't drunk but I could smell it. Tim grabbed my arm. "I just wanted to let you know that if Winston doesn't measure up to your standards, I'd love to show you what a real man could do for you sometime." I yanked my arm back and turned to walk away. As I started to walk away I felt a hand smack my butt.

I hurried back to the living room. I didn't need to use the bathroom anymore. It wasn't the first time something like this had happened; Tim has always been a creep. I just hated being in the same house with him.

I stayed up that whole night. I wasn't afraid of Tim or Curly, but the thought of me asleep and not knowing what they were doing wasn't desirable at all.

The next morning, I decided not to tell the girls what happened. I didn't want to cause friction between Angela and her brothers.

Dallas picked me up. I'm not sure how he knew I was here, but I was happy to see him. He didn't mention Soda walking in on us for the whole car ride. We mainly talked about the hangover I was having. He offered to take me somewhere till my headache went away, but I just wanted my own bed. We got to my driveway and the truck was gone, since Darry had work. Dallas paused before getting out of the car.

"Is it safe to go inside?" he asked. I nodded. He lead me inside, where Soda and Pony were alone, chatting about cars. They looked up when they heard us.

Soda walked over to us and held out his hand. "Are we cool?" he asked. Dallas looke down at Soda's hand, grabbed it, and shook it.

"Yeah, we're cool." Pony looked confused, as usual. "She had a rough night, so I'm gonna tuck her into bed and head out." Soda nodded and smiled at me.

Dallas walked me to my room and tucked me in. "Did Tim behave himself?" he asked. I nodded, wanting to sleep. Dal kissed me and left.

Nobody needed to know about Tim coming on to me, so I didn't tell them.


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own The Outsiders**

**AJ POV**

I woke up on Monday in a bad mood. I knew it would be a bad day before I even opened my eyes. I didn't feel good, I could feel cramps coming on, and I knew I'd have to see Curly today. But I knew I couldn't escape it, so I dragged myself out of bed and into the bathroom. I looked disgusting. My makeup from Sunday was now smudged under my eyes and my hair was frizzy.

I washed off my old makeup, brushed my hair, and went to make breakfast. I got to the kitchen and saw Soda and Dallas already in the kitchen. At least I didn't have to make breakfast. I heard them making plans to go out later and get wasted with Two-Bit. Soda wasn't much of a drinker, but he liked to have fun once in a while.

They turned and saw me when I walked into the kitchen. "Hey babe," Dal said. "Do you wanna go out with us later?"

I shook my head no. "I drank enough on Friday to last me a while." I was in bed all day on Saturday, and I wasn't looking to repeat that. I grabbed orange juice from the fridge, poured myself a glass, and walked over to the table to sit.

Dallas sat down next to me and put his arm around me. "Are you okay?" he asked me.

"I just don't feel good," I answered back.

"Well I know what'll make you feel better," Soda chimed in. "I know you're supposed to put water in pancake batter, but I thought that was too boring. So I put in coke instead!" He lifted up the pan to show me. Not only were the pancakes a strange shade of brown, but I'm pretty sure they were bubbling.

"Those look like dog shit," I said casually.

"You're just afraid of progress," Soda murmured. I had to crack a smile at that one.

When my other two brothers emerged from their rooms to eat breakfast, they both rejected the bubbly pancakes and opted for cake. Steve, who showed up to mooch food off of us, was the only one brave enough to try them. He chewed on them, gave Soda a weird look, and somehow managed to compliment him on his creativity.

School was boring, as usual. Angela skipped because she was out with her new boyfriend, so I was feeling pretty hopeful that I wouldn't have to see Curly either. But no such luck. He met up with Pony and walked off. I sighed. Today was going to be long.

I was distracted in most of my classes. I had a headache and really just wanted to go home. I was so distracted that I hardly noticed when Tim walked up to me at my locker.

"Hey Curtis," he said. I almost jumped out of my skin when I realized he was there. "I just wanted to know if you gave my offer any thought." He started to rub my arm and I scoffed.

"You're disgusting," I murmured and started to walk away. I felt a hand grab my arm hard and throw me against the lockers. I could feel his breath in my face and my heart pounding. He didn't let go of my arm.

"What?" he demanded. "You think you're too good for me, you dumb slut, huh?" I was terrified. Tim gave me the creeps anyway, but he was really scaring me. "Well, you're not. Not only are you a skank, but you're also a little tease. You won't give Dal the goods and you have the nerve to scoff at me?"

"Let go of my arm," was all I was able to get out. Tim just laughed.

"Brey?" I heard Pony next to me. We turned to see Curly and Pony standing a few feet away. Tim glared at me one final time and released my arm.

"Let's go, Curly," Tim said and walked away. Curly gave me a look, then gave Pony a look, and followed after Tim like a puppy.

"What did he do? Are you okay?" Pony asked. I nodded furiously and fought back tears.

"We were just talking, okay? I'm fine." Pony didn't look convinced at all.

"AJ, tell me and I can help. We can get the guys together and-"

"I said I'm fine!" I snapped at him. "Dallas and everybody else don't need to know anything. I'm handling it myself."

Pony's emotion was hard to read. He looked angry, but I also saw surprise and sadness. His voice was quiet. "How many times has Tim hurt you like that?"

I shook my head. "Don't worry about it, I'm taking care of it." Pony still looked unconvinced. "Come on, let's go home." I started to walk down the hall to Dal's waiting car and assumed that Pony was following me.

We got outside and saw Dallas and Tim talking. I stopped dead in my tracks for a second, then gained some composure and started walking again. I passed Tim without looking at him, forced myself to smile in Dallas' direction, and got in the passenger's seat in the car he was driving.

Pony got in the back seat, but not before he glared at Tim for a few seconds. Tim started to turn and go to his car. "Later, Winston," he said. He smiled at me through the open window. "See ya later, AJ."

Dallas got into the driver's seat and leaned to kiss me. I didn't turn my head to kiss him back so he just kissed my cheek and started the car. "Still not feeling good, babe?" he asked.

I shook my head. "I'll be fine though."

Pony was silent for the whole ride. He just stared out the window, looking angry and not saying a word. I knew it wasn't fair of me to leave him clueless, but I couldn't tell him without telling everybody. I hated people worrying about me and I was too freaked out to tell anyone.

Pony was fine when we got home. He smiled and laughed and did his homework, like he usually did. He was upset with me, though. He wouldn't look me in the eye for more than a second, and he didn't talk directly to me for the rest of the night, not even at dinner.

He didn't tell anyone what he saw though, and that was the important thing.

The guys were planning to go out to drink. "I hope it's okay, I invited Tim and he's meeting us there," Dallas said. I could feel knots in my stomach tightening up.

They left, leaving me with Pony and Darry. Pony wasn't talking to me, and Darry was doing his own thing, so I went to bed early. I had trouble getting to sleep though. All I could think about was what was going to happen tonight. I was scared it wouldn't be good as long as Tim was involved.


	6. Chapter 6

**I do not own The Outsiders**

AJ POV

I jolted up out of my dream, a dream I couldn't remember, but knew was bad. I was covered in a cold sweat and my breathing was heavy. I looked around the room once my eyes adjusted and saw that I was still in my own room. Looking at the clock, I saw that I was only asleep for an hour or two. I shook my head as if trying to shake bad thoughts out of my head. The dream felt like an omen.

I untangled myself from my sheets and switched my light on. The brightness hurt my eyes at first, but I adjusted pretty quickly. Throwing on one of the hoodies Dally had given to me, I walked out of my room. Darry was in bed by then, but Pony's room was empty. Walking out to the living room, I saw him sitting on the porch outside, smoking.

"Hey," I said, walking out onto the porch. Pony, who looked caught up in his own thoughts, snapped out of it and looked up at me.

"Hi," he replied, emotionless.

I pointed to the pack of cigarettes sitting beside him. "Mind if I join?" Pony shrugged and shook his head, so I took a seat next to him and took a cigarette out. Pony lit a match and held it up for me. "Thanks," I said before taking a hit. We sat there for a few minutes, with nothing but the sounds of crickets and distant cars to break the silence. "Listen, Pony," I started. "What you saw earlier today wasn't fair to you. I'm really sorry you saw what you saw and I promise that I have everything under control and you have nothing to worry about."

There was a small silence before Pony replied. "Why are you afraid of him?" He looked at me and raised his eyebrows, but didn't wait for an answer. "Because the AJ I know doesn't take shit from anybody. She never would've allowed anyone to grab her like that or get in her face like that. She would've pushed them right back." He paused before continuing. "When I saw you earlier, I almost didn't recognize you, you looked so scared. I've never known you to be scared of anything. I never thought I'd have to worry about you."

I scoffed slightly. "I'm the older sibling, Pony. You never have to worry about me."

"Yes, I do," he said quickly. "There's only a few ways girls in this town can go. They either sleep around, which usually comes with being slapped around and harassed, they stay Virgin Marys through high school, which usually ends with them getting attacked, or they learn to be tough and to defend themselves. You're lucky enough to have a friend group full of guys who would beat the living shit out of anyone who tried to hurt you, but we never worried about you. If there's anything I know, it's that Tim Shepard would do anything to you if nobody stopped him. What would've happened if I didn't see you in the hallway? You could've gotten hurt, or even raped."

"Yeah, right there in the school hallway," I said sarcastically.

"He's touched you before," Pony said. "There's no way you would have looked that scared if that was the first time he grabbed you. I know you want to take care of yourself but try to remember that the guy who sexually harassed you earlier is now out drinking with your boyfriend and your brother."

"Pony, there are things going on that you just don't understand, okay?"

"Like what? Why are you scared of Tim Shepard? Why won't you tell Dally what's going on?"

"I'm not scared of him. I'm scared of what Dallas would do if he found out." Pony looked over at me with his eyebrows scrunched up, looking confused. I sighed. "Dallas is really protective of me. Last year, before Dal and I started dating, I was at a party at Buck's with Angela and we were a little drunk and Tim made a move on me. He grabbed me a couple times and wouldn't leave me alone and when I said no, he hit me. Dallas was there and saw Tim touch me and took him outside and beat the living crap out of him. I thought Dal wasn't gonna stop, but he eventually stopped throwing punches. Dal grabbed Tim and pushed him up against the house and said that if he ever touched me again, it would be the last thing he ever did."

"Wait, he _hit _you? Were you okay?"

I nodded. "Just a bloody nose, it was nothing."

Pony opened his mouth, starting to say something, but changed his mind and closed it, looking down at the porch floor, deep in thought. "Does Angela know any of this?"

I shook my head. "She was pretty far gone that night, she doesn't know anything, and I'd rather not create tension between her and her brother."

"Brey, you can't run your life based on what's convenient for everyone else, that's not fair to you or them. Dallas needs to know about this, and I think Sodapop and Darry do too. Tim can be dangerous and it's not safe to deal with this on your own."

I shook my head and took a long drag of my cigarette. I lowered my voice to a whisper. "Dally will kill him," I choked out.

"I think that's a little extreme sounding. Dallas isn't capable of actually killing anyone."

"He and Tim are friends. If he knew Tim was starting in on me again…"I took another drag. "How do you think Sodapop would react if Steve ever gave Sandy a bloody nose? Or pushed her around in school or threatened her?"

"I know Soda wouldn't _kill _him." Pony looked sad and shook his head. "Look, it's your life and I'm not gonna interfere if you don't want me to. But if you come home with bruises or cuts and bloody noses or in tears because of that miserable waste of oxygen, than I'm not gonna ignore that, okay?" I nodded and smiled a little.

"Thanks Pony." We sat in comfortable silence for a couple minutes, enjoying the nice breeze. "When are the boys coming back? Did they mention an approximate time?" Pony shook his head, but we heard whoops and hollers in the distance. Before long we saw the boys playfully punching each other and laughing obnoxiously. I couldn't help but smile at the sight of my twin brother having a good time. He worked really hard to help support us and didn't get to have fun as much as he deserved.

Two-Bit was the first to acknowledge us, after taking a swig from his lucky flask. "Hey little lady," he slurred. "What's a pretty girl like you doing home alone on a beautiful night like this?"

I giggled. "I'm not alone, I'm with Pony." I nudged Pony, who remained silent.

The boys spent the next thirty minutes interrupting each other to tell us stories from their night out, including Sodapop getting hit on and Steve being mistaken for a pizza delivery guy. I knew it was getting late, so I decided to go to bed. I held out my hand for Dallas to take, which he did, and we walked into the house and into my room to say goodnight.

I yawned and laid down on my bed, inviting Dal to lay with me. He was drunk, but coherent enough to respond to my whispers. It was hot in my room, so I got up to put my hair up and change into a tank top. Dallas stood up too, reaching for his fly. "Do you mind if I take these off, baby? It's hot in here."

I shook my head. "No, go for it." We both changed and climbed back into bed. I could feel us both falling asleep, which wasn't a good idea since Dallas wasn't allowed in my room this late at night, but I could see he was tired and so was I. We both drifted off quickly.

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of my brothers moving around the living room and kitchen. My eyes shot open when I realized that Dallas was still lying next to me. There was no way he could get out of my room without the boys seeing him, which wasn't an option.

"Brey, it's time to get up," I heard, followed by a knock on my door.

"Uh, don't come in, Darry, I'm changing!"

"Okay, out the door in thirty minutes," Darry said and walked away from my door.

I shook Dallas until he woke up and covered his mouth with my hand. "You have to get out, like right now." Dallas realized where he was and shot out of my bed, looking around for a way to get out. He put on his pants and opened my window. I giggled as he struggled out the window.

Once he was outside, I leaned out of the window and kissed him. He winked at me, pushed some hair behind my ear, and kissed my forehead. "See ya later, baby." I watched as he waked away from the house and was amazed that we actually got away with that. Moments like that always made me realize how much I truly loved him, and further established that he was better off not knowing about Tim Shepard.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! Sorry for the huge delay, college has left me really busy. I know what direction this story is going in, but I'm having a little trouble getting there, so just hang in there okay? You guys are awesome!**

**I do not own The Outsiders**

**AJ POV**

As soon as I sat down at the kitchen table to eat breakfast, Dallas came strutting through the front door, cigarette in mouth. The boys all mumbled out greetings to him in between bites of their food.

"Geez, Dal, did you even go home last night?" Two-Bit asked. "Take a shower, man, you stink like booze."

"Hey, I got a little caught up last night, man, lay off," Dally said back, taking a seat next to me.

"Yeah, sorry we left without you last night, Dal. We weren't sure what you two were up to and we didn't want to… interrupt anything," Steve winked at us. Instinctively, Dally took away his arm that was around me and visibly separated from me. Darry looked up from his paper.

"I'm sorry, what? He was in your room last night, Brey?"

I shook my head furiously. "No, we just watched TV for a while, that's all."

Steve got the hint and immediately stopped talking. Darry looked at us for a minute, rolled his eyes and went back to his paper.

Soda chimed in to ease the tension. "Uh, I can take you to school AJ, if you're ready." I nodded and stood up.

"Where's Pony?" I asked.

"Early track practice," Darry chimed in. I grabbed my bag and followed Sodapop and Steve out the door. Dallas was right behind me. He kissed me goodbye and took off down the street. As soon as we were outside I shoved Steve.

"Are you out of your mind?" I asked him. He laughed.

"Sorry Brey!" He held his hands up in defense. "It slipped out, that's all." We all climbed into the truck and Soda started driving toward school.

"And for your information, _Steven,_ all we did last night was talk and sleep. There was nothing sexy at all."

"Ugh, can we not use that word when talking about my little sister, please?" Soda groaned from the driver's seat.

"Um, excuse me, twin sister, not little sister."

"Same thing," he grunted. "Oh, and just a head's up: Darry knows that Dal was in your room for at least a little while last night so he's gonna have a little talk with him. I don't think Darry's gonna yell or threaten him or anything, just repeat the rules about him being in your room. So don't let Darry find you two again okay? You won't like the outcome."

"Wait, how did Darry know?" I glared at Steve.

Soda shrugged. "He knows everything, he's Darry." We drove for a few minutes with only the sound of Steve tapping the dashboard to break the silence. "Are you gonna need a ride home, Brey?" I nodded. "I get out of work at 3:30, so just walk to DX and hang out for a few minutes. Are you okay walking alone?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine." We pulled up to the school and I opened the door and hopped out. "Thanks Sodapop," I said. He smiled back at me.

He was about to drive away when a greaser girl behind us yell, "Hey, Sodapop! What's up, Dollface?" Soda smirked and held up his hand to her, causing the girl to giggle to her friend. I turned back to Soda and we both chuckled. Between Sodapop and Pony's good looks and Darry's old luck with girls before Mom and Dad died, the Curtis brothers were known to be lady's men. It felt strange that my brothers were thought of like that.

"Get to class, Brey. Learn something." I waved goodbye to Sodapop and Steve and walked to meet with Angela. I wasn't sure whether or not Steve was actually still enrolled in school or not. I've never taken the same classes as him, but I see him walking the halls once in a while. But some days, he went to work with Sodapop instead of school.

We passed Two-Bit, who finally made it past junior year and was now a senior, in the hallway. There was a good chance he was still drunk from last night, because he was laughing wildly when we saw him, unable to even walk in a straight line. He saw me and Angela and ran up to us.

"AJ, next time you should come with us, it was so much fun!" His eyes were bloodshot and his words were a little slurred.

"You know, you really shouldn't be getting wasted at school," I said back. Two-Bit laughed in response.

"AJ, if there is anything I've learned in my fourteen years of school, it's that I should be taking risks and exploring options, or something." He beamed a smile at us and ran off to hit on some blonde.

Angela looked at me with raised eyebrows. "Why didn't you come last night? It really was fun."

I shrugged. "My early curfew." Angela took that as an answer, but that wasn't entirely true. I couldn't tell her the truth without telling her about Tim. As if on cue, we heard a familiar voice behind us.

"Ang!" We turned around and saw Curly running toward us. "Tim told me to tell you that if you want a ride home, you have to wait till four."

Angela groaned. "Why?" It came out more of a whine than a question, but Angela loved to be a drama queen.

Curly shrugged. "Do you think he tells me anything?" He turned and walked away from us. The Shepard siblings had such a way with goodbyes.

"I'm sure Soda can drive you. We just have to walk down to the DX after school." Angela nodded and smiled.

"I'll wait however long I have to if it means seeing Sodapop." I looked down to the ground and laughed silently. Angela had always had a crush on Soda, like every other girl in town. Just the thought of Angela and Sodapop together was a funny.

After school we started walking toward the DX. It was less than a mile, so I knew it wouldn't take long. A couple cars passed us with guys whistling at us, probably because Angela liked to wear her shirts short and her skirts shorter. She liked the attention, and I didn't blame her. Between Tim being how he is and Curly being tossed in and out of reformatories, Angela had to be how she was to get her mother to look at her once in a while.

Steve was under a car when we got to the DX. Sodapop was leaning out of an open window from inside the store, yelling something at Steve followed by wild laughter from both of them. He saw us and waved. "Why, hello Miss Shepard. To what do we owe the honor?" Soda was never one to be anything but charming to girls, even one's who had reputations like Angela or Sylvia. At the mention of the Angela, we heard Steve bang his head under the car and watched as he scurried out from underneath. He and Evie were in an on and off relationship, and it was currently off.

"Hey there, Ang," Steve tried to appear suave as he casually fixed his hair. His hands and face had motor oil on them, and we laughed as he spread it into his hair.

"Soda, Angela needs a ride home," I explained. Sodapop nodded.

"Yeah sure, no problem. Give us half an hour, okay?"

We stayed inside at the counter while we were waiting since it was so hot outside. It wasn't busy so we leaned over the counter and chatted with Soda and Steve when he came in from outside.

A couple guys came in about ten minutes later. They were greasers, but they weren't thugs or anything. As soon as they saw me and Angela, they all whistled and one of them slipped some dirty comment out. Their advances were more toward Angela, probably because of her short skirt.

Soda's face went stern. He hated guys acting like that, especially around me. The boys grabbed a couple cokes and headed up toward the counter. Soda kept his arms crossed so Steve cashed them out. One of them winked at Angela before they walked out.

"Pigs," Soda grumbled.

When the guys were done with their shift, we headed out. It was a little bit of a tight fit, but nobody seemed to mind. We dropped Angela off and headed toward home. We didn't drop Steve off, so I guessed that the boys were planning to play poker or something that night. I hoped we could spend a night in. I figured everyone could use one of those.

It turns out there was some race on TV, so the boys spent the night gathered in the living room while I sat at the kitchen table trying to get some reading done. It was a Friday night, so I wished I had somewhere else to go, but Angela and the rest of my friends were off partying and I just wasn't in the mood.

Darry invited Dallas to go outside and have a cigarette with him, which I knew was just a way to Dal away from me and the boys so they could have their talk. They stayed outside for ten or fifteen minutes before they came back in. Neither of them looked angry or upset in any way, so I assumed that meant that Soda was right when he said Darry wouldn't yell, which I appreciated. Darry had no problem watching over Sodapop and Pony, but I knew he always had a hard time taking care of a teenage girl. It was easy for him to lose his temper when I did something he didn't understand, so staying calm and rational meant a lot to me.

Cheers and howls came from the living room. Popcorn was thrown and the boys starting playfully punching each other's shoulders. I knew I would be the one cleaning up that popcorn later.

"Does anyone else want a beer?" I heard Dally ask. He got some scattered answers. He walked into the kitchen and kissed the top of my head. "You alright?" he asked against my head before kissing it again. I smiled and nodded. Dally went to the fridge and grabbed four beers before closing it. He nodded toward the living room. "Come watch with us," he asked. I stood up with him and walked to the living room. I didn't really want to watch races with the boys that much, but I didn't want to sit by myself and my homework was boring.

The races lasted a long time, but it was more fun watching them with the boys then I thought it would be. Darry doesn't like me drinking, but Dally handed me his beer every few minutes so I could take a sip. I think Darry noticed, but he didn't say anything. There were cigarettes being passed around along with popcorn and beer. Pony was able to sneak a few sips too, which floored me a little. When did Pony get old enough to handle drinking? My little brother was growing up way too fast.

After the races had finally finished, we all moved to the kitchen and played poker. Even Darry joined us, since he had the next day off from work. We all laughed and had a great time. There was music blasting in the background, probably heard from the street. I loved these rare nights when we could all be one family, no problems or issues holding us back.

We stayed up all night, Darry finally retiring when he saw the sun starting to rise. Two-Bit finally passed out on the living room floor, chocolate cake in hand. Steve fell asleep sitting up on the couch, with Sodapop curled up next to him. Dallas left, saying he was gonna bring back donuts and pancakes for everyone, but after he took care of some business first. Pony went for a run to keep up his training schedule for track. That kid was nuts. I was the last to pass out, barely even making it to my bed. It was the first time in a while that I didn't go to sleep worrying about Tim Shepard in the back of my mind.


End file.
